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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28029573">No.1 Waking up Restrained</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiGi/pseuds/LiGi'>LiGi</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Merlin (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Hanging, Hurt Lancelot (Merlin), Hurt Merlin (Merlin), Waking up Restrained, Whump, Whumptober 2020, can be mercelot if you like, no 1, shackled</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 23:08:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>659</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28029573</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiGi/pseuds/LiGi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Whumptober 2020 no.1 - Waking up Restrained<br/>Lancelot wakes to find himself in a bit of a predicament.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lancelot &amp; Merlin (Merlin)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2053113</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>67</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>No.1 Waking up Restrained</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Finally getting around to putting up my Whumptober fics... hope you enjoy...</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>No. 1 – Waking up restrained / Shackled / Hanging</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The pain woke Lancelot, radiating through his body. He kept his eyes shut, cataloguing the pain and injuries over his body as his fuzzy mind desperately tried to recall what had happened.</p>
<p>The first thing he registered was that he was restrained. Heavy iron shackles, too tight around his wrists, were holding his arms above his head, wrenching his shoulders up and back painfully. He was sitting on the cold ground, leaning against what felt like a wagon wheel, it was digging into his side just below his ribs.</p>
<p>His face ached and his head pounded, his heartbeat sending more pain throbbing through his skull. He shivered violently, groaning as frosty cold seeped into skin, cramping his muscles as he tried to adjust the position of his arms.</p>
<p>Opening his eyes, he was met with the view of a campsite. He counted eight bandits moving around a fire pit, packing up bedrolls and pans, laughing as they did so. All of them had a sword hanging from their belts, along with a small hand-axe and a dagger.</p>
<p>Lancelot looked down at his own waist. His sword and dagger were, of course, gone. As was his belt, chainmail, gambeson and cloak. No wonder he was cold, it was the middle of winter and he only had his undershirt and breeches. His shirt was ripped across the chest, the edges of the fabric red with blood.</p>
<p>Tipping his head backwards he found he was right about the wagon wheel. He was shackled to the side of a large wagon covered with canvas. He turned to his left and his heart dropped to his stomach.</p>
<p>Merlin was chained beside him.</p>
<p>He didn’t look in any better condition than Lancelot. He was unconscious, a large bruise blooming across his pale face. He was hanging limply from the shackles that circled his wrists. They looked far too tight, the rusty iron digging into Merlin’s skin, crusted blood trailing down his forearms.</p>
<p>With effort, Lancelot shifted his leg, knocking his knee against Merlin’s. It took a few attempts before Merlin groaned, his head lifting slightly as he winced and gasped against the pain.</p>
<p>“Merlin, are you alright?” Lancelot murmured, his voice raspy where his throat was so dry.</p>
<p>Merlin groaned again, looking across at the bandits and closing his eyes again in defeat. His eyebrows drew down and he grimaced.</p>
<p>“Damn.”</p>
<p>Seconds later Merlin’s eyes flew open, flaring gold as he muttered words Lancelot didn’t understand. Nothing happened.</p>
<p>“No,” Merlin ground out between gritted teeth. His eyes blazed again. Lancelot stared transfixed as the blue was overtaken by bright shimmering gold, but the burning colour stuttered and faded before Merlin had even finished saying the spell. Lancelot glanced back towards the bandits; they didn’t seem to have noticed their captives were awake.</p>
<p>Merlin tried the spell again, but still nothing happened and his magic seemed to ebb away. He collapsed back against the side of the wagon, panting.</p>
<p>“I can’t do anything. My magic is being stopped.”</p>
<p>“Stopped?” Lancelot asked, worry edging into his mind.</p>
<p>“They must know…” Merlin’s gaze began darting around the camp in panic, over the bandits, the tree line, up to the shackles holding his arms aloft. “The shackles. They’re magic proof.”</p>
<p>Suddenly it came back to Lancelot. He and Merlin had been riding through the woods – Merlin had been collecting herbs for Gaius and Lancelot had offered to escort him – when several men had ambushed them. Lancelot had pulled his sword, but eight against one weren’t odds even he felt confident beating. Merlin had employed his own way of fighting. Lancelot had seen him do it before; branches falling from trees, sword hilts burning, stones flying through the air unaided…</p>
<p>Someone had noticed.</p>
<p>Someone knew Merlin was a sorcerer. Someone with the capability to render him powerless.</p>
<p>For the first time since waking up and finding himself injured and restrained, Lancelot felt terrified.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading! I love all and any comments!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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